European shares start lower; Sanofi-Aventis gains ground

SarahTurner

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- European shares started in negative territory on Wednesday, after U.S. equity markets sagged in late trading overnight and as investors eyed a fresh set of earnings from companies such as retailer Metro
CEC, -3.18%
German industrial conglomerate Siemens
SI, +0.00%SIE, -1.54%
eased 1.3% after it named a new chief financial officer and chief technology officer in a shake-up of the board, while France's Sanofi-Aventis
SNY, -0.35%SAN, -0.86%
surged 8% after it reached a settlement to delay a generic competitor for its Plavix blood thinning treatment until 2011. Broadly, the FTSE 100 index eased 0.5% at 5,960, the German DAX 30 index declined at 0.8% at 5,863 and the French CAC-40 index slipped 0.3% at 5,134.

Have breaking news sent to your inbox. Subscribe to MarketWatch's free Bulletin emails. Sign up here.

Intraday Data provided by SIX Financial Information and subject to terms of use. Historical and current end-of-day data provided by SIX Financial Information. All quotes are in local exchange time. Real-time last sale data for U.S. stock quotes reflect trades reported through Nasdaq only. Intraday data delayed at least 15 minutes or per exchange requirements.